HOW DOES IT HAPPEN?

By Ruth A. Sheets

I just finished reading the book "The Seamstress" by Sara Bernstein.  It is one of the most disturbing books I have ever read.  I nearly stopped reading it numerous times.  I read it as an audio book and the reader's storytelling voice made it all seem almost normal by the end.  What was normal, the experiences of a young Jewish Romanian woman, a victim of the Holocaust. 

As I read, the old question kept surfacing, How could this happen?  How do whole groups of people lose their humanity while they are working hard to destroy the humanity of others?  Do the perpetrators realize they have lost their humanity?  Is there any way to let them know what they are doing in time to save them and everyone else from the horrors to follow?

In the memoir, a young girl, her friends, and a multitude of Jewish women are brutalized, starved, forced to work as slaves, deprived of all dignity, herded like animals because of religion.  Christians performed unspeakable acts on people they did not know just because they could.  They had the power of the state behind them.

The hardest part to read was just how slowly and methodically it all happened to Ms. Bernstein and her friends and family.  Pay was cut, jobs became harder and harder to find if you were Jewish.  Christian citizens of Romania and Hungary had no problem hurting, spitting on, and otherwise humiliating people they thought were Jews.  They restricted where they could live, where they could shop, where they could go.  The Germans had not even entered these countries when these actions were happening, so they can only be indirectly blamed for the way things got started there.  Much of the brutality was home grown in Hungary and Romania.

By 1942, life even in the cities became nearly impossible.  People were arrested and accused of spying, when they were actually charged with being Jews.  The military was everywhere and if they happened to shoot someone, well, that was only a Jew, so who cares.

The labor camps where thousands were driven by overwork to their deaths, then the concentration camps where millions were starved and murdered are so hard to imagine because there has been nothing like them.  The Germans and other leaders built upon each other to devise more and more horrific acts to use against their captives while they pretended they were just doing their duty.

I have read other memoirs of the Holocaust, but this one was the recollections of a woman.  Had I been born in a different time and place, it could have been I who faced the horrors of watching her sister shot in front of her, watching women beaten to death for singing, seeing the bodies of dead and dying women tossed onto piles to be carted away.  The author was 44 pounds when rescued in 1945. 

I know many conservatives don't like anything they do or say being compared with the rise of the Nazis in the 1930s in Europe, but I am seeing clear parallels.  We Americans are told "That could not happen here.  No one would allow it."  Having read this woman's story, I am not so sure.  It came on so slowly most people didn't even recognize what was going on until it was too late to do anything about it. 

A nebulous anger about jobs and working condition led Christians who felt entitled to good work at a decent wage needed someone to blame.  For centuries, Jews had provided fodder for their hatred.   How were Jews responsible, just by existing.  It was easy to target Jews in small communities, but more challenging in cities where there was more education and more religious mixing.  Begin limiting their rights, a bit at a time, make it difficult for them to earn money or have businesses.  Call them "Christ Killers," so you are excused to do whatever you want, in the name of Christ, whether you were actually religious or not.  See Jews as foreigners with no right to be in the country.

Some people in power in our country work hard to limit the rights of those they feel are beneath them, perhaps even inferior to them.  They have helped to create fear of people of color, a disdain of women, resentment of the poor - the takers, a belief that their religion is the only true faith and that one religion in particular is filled with terrorists.  They glorify the military, no matter what it does. 
They champion a kind of American nationalism that leaves many in our nation and the world vulnerable.

Immigrants are bad, except my ancestors "who came here the right way."  These folks are OK with incarcerating children for life, if they are of the feared groups.  They will deport the parents of
American citizen children just because they can, they are illegal immigrants, you know.  Racists and sexists are "fine people" and we have to protect our culture and its statues.

Remember, America has had its own concentration camps during World War II when more than 100,000 Japanese Americans were interned for being Japanese.  We still have Guantanamo which can hold a lot of people in a place that could easily be closed off to all inspection. 

Is this how it begins?  Is this how it happens?

WHEN ALL THAT MATTERS IS A WIN

by Ruth A. Sheets

Before Thanksgiving, our Congress is planning to vote on major "Tax Reform" bills and have them signed by Mr. Trump before Christmas.  Republicans claim the bills they have brought forth will cut taxes for the middle class and "stimulate" our economy.  They also claim they are simplifying the tax code.  It is hard to believe even they believe these claims. 

When supporters, all Republicans in both the House and Senate, are asked about provisions of the bill, it is clear they don't really know or understand what is in the bills, let alone the consequences of passing this legislation for most Americans. They say they don't want to give tax breaks to the rich, but know full well this is what will happen.

Republicans in the Senate made sure that only Republican votes would be necessary to pass this tax overhaul and shoved hundreds of amendments into the bill which will affect large numbers of the most vulnerable Americans.  This includes cutting Medicaid and Medicare, license to drill in the Arctic Wildlife Reserve and a repeal of the most critical part of the Affordable Care Act, which was already voted down several times this year, and lots more.

What is going on here?  It is about a win, a big win.  Supposedly, Republicans promised their constituents they would repeal "Obamacare."  Because it has the name "Obama" in it, it is reflexively hated by a large number of white Americans.  "How dare a black man think he could be president and pass anything?"  So, in order to keep the loyalty of these constituents, they feel they can cheat, lie, misdirect, and generally cause harm to many Americans as long as they can claim a big win.

The one thing that is certain, if members of Congress have to prepare a bill in secret, then scheme and plot to make sure only their party gets a say in what is passed, something is wrong with the legislation.  And, of course, there is a lot wrong with it.  Cutting taxes for the wealthiest hoping they will put that money into more jobs or anything else except their bank account is  ridiculous.  Cutting corporate taxes nearly in half also hoping for more jobs, higher wages, and the return of money from offshore is a fantasy they want uninformed Americans to buy.

But wait!  Most Americans do not want these bills at all.  Over and over, polls tell all of us that Americans do not want tax cuts for the wealthy.  They like their health care.  They like the deductions for state and local taxes.  They like the deductions for student loans (even though they are very small) and those for home mortgages.  This does not seem to matter at all.  No Republicans have come forward to say "I am not voting for this thing.  My people don't want it, so I support them."  If they were to say this, their donors will supposedly pull financial support for their campaigns.  These Republican candidates are sure their courage will not be rewarded at home.  Far right candidates will be put against them and be better funded, so they will lose the seat.  

Wow!  So donors buy the seats and make demands from those who sit in them.  In New Jersey, a Senator is on trial for accepting gifts with no evidence that those gifts influenced his votes on anything.  How is he on trial when wealthy Republican donors are not?  They are getting votes for their gifts.

When the win is the only thing.  People will sacrifice their honor, their integrity, and just about everything else for it.  They will allow themselves to be threatened, cajoled, and bribed into doing things they know are wrong.  Or, they lie to themselves that what they are doing is good for everyone because it is good for them.  I keep hoping a Republican "lawmaker" will see defeating a horrific bill as a win.  I doubt I will see it any time soon, though.  So, I will mourn with the American people as we deal with the major cuts to critical programs that will come just because Republicans need a win.

WHERE YOU COULD REALLY HELP - IF YOU CARED

Ruth A. Sheets

Every day, my inbox contains notices from candidates who just learned the Koch brothers or some other super rich entities are financing an opponent's campaign for amounts of money that ordinary citizens in their thousands will never be able to match.

This is disturbing. In a democracy, financial interference in elections by the super wealthy should be obscene, unacceptable. But, in reality, it is just the opposite. It's encouraged and Supreme Court approved. We hear both parties do it and so it's OK.

First of all, this level of financial interference with elections is not equally applied, but should not be allowed at all. There should be a reasonable limit to contributions any citizen can make to candidates, no matter their wealth. This won't happen any time soon because this super money gets people elected who are beholden to particular individuals, corporations, industries, or causes. The gains bring excessive, usually undeserved power and influence to the donors. This goes to the highest levels of government, all three branches as well as the most local levels for school board and town councils.

Rich people want to know their money will get them influence and recognition, even celebrity. They name things after themselves, establish foundations that give money to grateful groups who will make the donors seem legitimate and philanthropic. They want something for their dollars, and that something is name recognition, political influence, and a variety of "unacknowledged" special privileges.

The wealthy of the world believe they got their money by their own hard work, skill and talent, so, owe nothing to anyone else, but generously choose to share their largess with those they deem worthy. And, of course, those they deem worthy are those who have the same political and social views. Their foundations draw supplicants who come begging on their knees for the dribbles of help distributed to the poor and pathetic.

Toss a few bucks to local charities (not too much, though). Support a cultural institution, especially if your name can be on something. Give to your college/university to get a chair named for you, or perhaps an important building on campus. That also gives your kids free tuition to the institution. What a deal!

If the wealthy of our nation really cared about the country, its people, and its institutions, they would pay their workers better wages. They would name their buildings for great Americans like Harriet Tubman, Susan B. Anthony, or Caesar Chavez who made major contributions to American life and discourse. Then, they would seek out and help struggling local organizations that support people whose luck did not lead to the same level of wealth the donor has.

A million dollars to a place like Bethany Children's Home in Womelsdorf, PA that serves children from troubled home situations could indefinitely provide essential fees for graduating seniors attending school in local districts. Knowing they could attend proms, receive yearbooks, and walk at graduation would make a huge difference to so many young people. But, there would probably not be a lot of publicity. It's not glamorous, but truly needed.

That same million dollars, though is more likely to be contributed to a campaign to put some mega conservative in office who will promote fossil fuels in the face of global warming or try to limit women's right to choose as women have no right anywhere but in the home cooking, cleaning, and caring for their master. And, Oh yes, it will help to elect people who can make the donors even richer. Yeah, that's what America needs.

So, shame on you because you rich guys could make such a huge positive difference that would benefit so many more people. You could help real kids, support artists just starting out. You could help local schools get supplies and take trips that would make the education experience so much more valuable to kids. You could help communities preserve local historical sites. You could support community groups that provide after school recreation and study for kids who don't yet have the luck you had. You could do so much more with your money, a drop in the bucket for you, but you don't.
I get it, such largess might help people who don't share your ultra conservative views. Right now, you are hoarding your funds to obtain the greatest influence you can. Shame on you when you could help so many because you've received so much.

OVERWHELMED AGAIN

by Ruth A. Sheets

Over four and a half years ago I wrote a blog about how overwhelmed I was at Republican vitriol after Barack Obama was re-elected in 2012.  One would have thought he had a mandate to get his agenda passed.  That, of course, is not what happened.  State legislatures had gerrymandered districts so thoroughly that the House of Representatives was heavily weighted toward Republicans, and those Republicans could not bring themselves to support anything President Obama favored, and  racism raised its ugly head. 

Since then, the attacks on the American system have exploded.  A sexist, racist bully has been elected president by the Electoral College, an outdated structure designed originally to protect Southern states and their desire to maintain slavery.  He lost the popular vote, you know the vote by individual Americans by nearly 3 million votes, yet he believes he has a mandate to totally rework the American government.  Gerrymandering has increased significantly, so it will be harder for Democrats or Independents to stop any of the "mandated" legislation, no matter how much it hurts the people.

The majority of the American people don't want any of Trump's proposals for government change, yet we may get it anyway, perhaps all of it.  We daily face the blows to our democracy, like the ones below.

- Encourage or at least allow members of the Trump campaign to meet with Russians whose goal was to disrupt the election on behalf of Mr. Trump.
- Approve as a partisan Senate totally inappropriate secretaries to head all the governmental departments that serve the American people.  They are either incompetent (Ben Carson at Housing and Urban Development - I guess that growing up in public housing makes you an expert in it) or totally opposed to the department they are heading, to the point of trying to bring the department down, (most of the rest of them).
- Install relatives and other cronies who have minimal experience with anything related to governing.
- Start A shouting contest with a foreign entity that has access to nuclear weapons and a leader as unstable as ours, as though nuclear war is a positive.
- Ban Muslims from coming into our country even to visit.
- Stop the flow of refugees who are desperate, have been heavily vetted, and have nowhere else to go.
- surround the president with people whom he expects to lie for him to support his own lies.
- Cut funds that support family planning around the world which help  countries that are already in distress due to climate change and overpopulation.
- Oh, then, there's Climate Change, alright, it's really GLOBAL WARMING!  deny that anything is happening to the climate.  Not by choice of the American people, but by executive order, pull the US out of the Paris Climate Agreement.
- Allow coal, oil, and gas companies to continue to pollute at high levels because it costs too much to lower the emissions, even though deaths from the pollution are mounting.  Oh, by the way, it's OK for coal companies to dump their waste in streams and rivers.  Too bad folks downstream!
- Treat the citizens, American citizens of Puerto Rico with such disrespect that more than a month after the most devastating hurricane they have experienced in a century, most of the people still do not have access to power or clean water.
- "Order" the NFL to fire anyone who protests the way African-Americans are being treated in our justice system by "taking a knee" during the National Anthem.
- Insult the families of military personnel who have died, and when it is reported, claim it didn't happen and insult a respected Congresswoman.  Have your staff continue the insults too.
- Claim white supremacists are fine people and equate them with people who are peacefully protesting the group's racist actions.
- Nominate justices to the Federal courts who are mostly male, very young, hold extremely conservative positions on nearly every issue, and who are often not even qualified by modern standards to sit on any bench.
- Propose a tax bill that claims to give BIG breaks to middle class people, but actually gives BIGGER cuts to the wealthiest, who can now incorporate and get a 50% tax cut or just take their operations off shore.  In the process, cut all programs that serve poor disadvantaged citizens and communities, protect the environment, and improve our infrastructure.
- Begin a process to open public lands to drilling and mining, propose to close some National Parks, and double or triple park admissions.
- Call any news coverage you don't  like "fake news" and undermine journalists and limit access.
- Sabotage the Affordable Care Act by cutting the amount of time people have to sign up, cutting nearly all the money for advertising, and severely limiting the number of people who can  help citizens navigate the sign-up process, all leading to higher premiums and other problems.
- Appoint a "Voter Fraud" Commission manned by people who want desperately to limit voting, especially voting by people of color, young people, and a lot of other folks (who just might be Democrats).

Overwhelmed!  The majority of Americans want none of this, but Republicans are plowing head with all of it and more.  The list above could be twice as long.  How can we stand for the American people in the face of this onslaught?  That is the question I ask myself often before I think I might give up.

Well, this is my country as much as it is Mr. Trump's and I know Mr. Trump can only see dollar signs when he looks at every issue.  He allows only people around him who see the same dollar signs and will work to destroy any American institutions that might hinder his free-wheeling acquisition of money and power.

What do we do.  We read the list, We vote for people who will stand against these actions.  we pick a few things we can stand against, then we fight as hard as we can on those issues.  We find others who can stand with us.  There are great organizations working to stop the insanity.  We are not victims if we stand up to the bullying, lying, cheating, and hate.  We are patriotic Americans.

CONGRATULATIONS TRUMP PARENTS!!

by Ruth A. Sheets

Those of you who became pregnant after the celebrations of the inauguration of Donald Trump way back in January, have given birth or will in the next week or so.  I thought you might like to consider the gifts your man Donald has given to your new baby.

1. He has delivered the Supreme Court to the most Conservative elements of society.  You believe in all those Conservative ideas, you say.  Ah yes, that is until they make rulings that restrict your rights, not the one to keep and bear arms, but perhaps the ones that force you to keep making the rich richer.  Oh, you’re one of the rich.  I guess this won’t be a problem for you.

2. When Mr. Trump could not get a “repeal and replace” for the Affordable Care Act (ACA), he single-handedly cut subsidies to insurance companies that support those who cannot afford regular insurance plans.  How bold of him.  You say your employer provides health insurance for you?  I’m sure that coverage has no co-pays or other financial outlays.  Of course, your share won’t ever go up.

3. The Conservatives in Congress let CHIP go unrenewed.  This means health care for many children won’t be covered.  Oh, of course, your child’s care is covered, so what happens to those other kids really isn’t your problem, is it?

4. Mr. Commander-in-Chief has declared that transgender and foreign-born persons cannot be in his military.  Oh, yes, your child is too young to care about that and someone will come along later and fix that before your child comes of age, but wait, your child is neither of those things, so no problem.

5. Mr. Trump and his friends don’t like people who are Muslim.  They don’t want them in their country, so they have placed bans on their entrance into the US.  You say you are not Muslim so this is not a problem for you either.  

6. Mr. Trump wants to completely “reform” America’s taxes.  He and the Conservatives in Congress are working hard to do this with a tax plan that will REWARD the wealthiest and give a few crumbs to the rest of the taxpayers.  Oh, you are among the 1%?  Congratulations.  You will continue to be coddled and your child will continue to have enormous privileges.  How fortunate for you.  Who needs Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security.  These will all be cut because those “Welfare Queens” get too much already.  

So, you see, you have brought your child into the best of all possible worlds for Wealthy Conservatives.  And, with the limiting of voting rights and gerrymandering, your child can look forward to many years of privilege and success.  Merry Christmas! 

TO CENSURE OR NOT TO CENSURE

By Ruth A. Sheets

There is a proposal that the Senate of the United States, on its return to Washington from the August break, censure Mr. Donald Trump for his racist comments and support of White supremacists after Charlottesville. 

What would a censure mean? 

This man who currently occupies the White House is an embarrassment, but I can't just blame him.  We knew what he was before he was elected by a minority of the population and an outdated racist electoral college.  How could we have expected anything different.  He has always been a racist misogynist bully, but it seems enough people are OK with this that it will matter little whether or not the Senate slaps his wrist. 

Mr. Trump feels nothing but anger and can empathize with no one as seen in his responses to Charlottesville and Houston. 

He has, with the help of the Senate,  surrounded himself with people who also care for nothing but their money, as seen through the responses to devastating climate change, increasing poverty, Wall Street excesses, inequity in education, an uptick in the drug war, and so on and so on, through every Government department.  

So, my question again, what would censure mean?

I suspect, little or nothing, but I suppose the Senate should go through the motions, if only to say that even someone like Donald Trump is not unlimited in his actions.  Maybe through such an act, the Senate will find the courage to work for the American people instead of for the "win." 

I don't believe most Americans had any idea what damage an unscrupulous, politically ignorant president could do to our Constitution and democracy.  Maybe people will begin to note that to hold a position like the Presidency of the United States requires experience beyond what running a real estate empire and being a Reality TV star can give you. 

Naaah!  Americans like bullies.  Racism and sexism are just bonuses in a president, and, perhaps, a Senator. 

MOVE THE STATUES

By Ruth A. Sheets

It's time to acknowledge that the Civil War was really totally about slavery, slavery in one part of the country, which affected and infected the whole.  It is also time we remove from public spaces, the statues of the men who decided that slavery was more important than the union.  We now need union more than ever. 

It is also time we as a nation acknowledge that we have seen and understood African-Americans as less than human and that this vision keeps us from truly knowing African-Americans as our equals in every way. 

For these reasons and so many more, the statues must go.  They belong in museums, cemeteries and national parks, where people can remember that human beings can and should be better than the worst impulses our biases and prejudices would give us.  We can remember that people can be brave in causes that are unjust, but should not be celebrated for that.

Perhaps removing the stone and bronze remembrances can allow our nation to acknowledge our racist past and a present built on the beliefs and prejudices, as well as the money that came from a slavery economy and its Jim Crow aftermath. 

There are many among us who continue to see African-Americans as inferior and design laws, neighborhoods, poverty programs, education systems, a justice system, and economic policies to prove it.  White people declare "We are not racist," without ever having to examine why it is our kids are in the "good" schools and they get in the "good" colleges and live in the "good" neighborhoods.

Do we White Americans really deserve all our privileges while so many Black Americans languish in deep poverty, isolated from technology, trapped in schools with inadequate resources, stuck in food deserts, where there is never sufficient money to demand a livable environment.  Do we really think all we have, came our way  just because we worked so hard?  Of course most of us do.  Why not?  We are told that all our lives.

The statues of Confederate soldiers are a reminder to Black Americans that those rebels are more revered than they are and more valued by the culture. 

Those statues must be moved from our public spaces to remind us that black lives do matter and that we as a nation need to start living as though they do.

TEACHER SHORTAGE

By Ruth A. Sheets

There is a national teacher shortage.  In many states, we are told, this shortage has been going on for some time.  It is a critical problem.  I had a friend who had no degree, but was teaching in a school in New Mexico.  She was a dedicated person, but had no substantial training to be in a classroom as its teacher.

Why is there a shortage?  Forty years ago when I came out of college with an Education degree, I couldn't get a job because there were so many teachers looking for work.  Teaching was seen as an honorable profession and although pay was low, teachers were respected.

I am now a teacher.  I just completed my 22nd year in public school teaching.  I love my students and work many extra hours each week and during the summer.  Like so many veteran teachers, I work hard because I believe what I do matters.

Why is there a teacher shortage?  There are a lot of reasons.  Here are a few that I see in my district. 

Teachers are often treated like incompetents.  Our ideas are dismissed in favor of "I feel this would be better for our children" stated by administrators whose experience is not adequate to the needs of the students.  For example, we are told we must have "bell to bell instruction" which means some kind of reading or written work all day long.  As if this were not enough, all classes in a particular grade are to be teaching the same thing at the same time every day.  When we ask where the evidence is for these practices, we are shown none, but told we MUST do this or lose our jobs.

Despite strong evidence that recess, physical activity during the day, and the arts are essential for happy, healthy, well-educated children, our schools have less than 15 minutes per day of recess, limited exposure to the arts, and sitting all day is the norm.

Every couple of years, new curricula are purchased, never the whole curriculum  for any subject, and we are given inadequate training in it.  But, we are expected to raise student achievement with it, while we are trying to learn its nuances.  We are told that unless we follow every single step of the procedure, we are responsible if our students don't get "Proficient" scores or higher on the state exams.

We must daily, perform miracles with students whose living conditions are in some cases 3rd world with limited resources, while governments discuss cutting funding to every program that helps people in poverty.  My students' families struggle to make ends meet, holding down 2 or more jobs at a time. The stress students experience can be dramatic.

In most states, all teachers have at least a Master's degree by the time they have taught 5 years.  That is a substantial education requirement that many occupations do not have, yet teachers' knowledge and experience are ignored as though what has been learned and experienced counts for nothing. 

Then, administrators are in a "gotcha" mode.  Every time they enter a classroom or do a "walk through," of a school, it is not about encouragement for either teachers or students.  It is about pointing out how the teachers are doing things wrong and are incompetent, but "allowed" to teach in the district's precious classrooms out of the goodness of the administrators'  hearts.  Teachers are often threatened with loss of job if they don't measure up to some arbitrary standards, impossible to meet with real children who live in challenging conditions. 

We are no longer to display store bought materials and posters.  Teachers in our district are expected to produce all of our own room decorations and handwritten notes on what the class is working on every day.  These are to be displayed prominently in the classroom so anyone walking in the room can "see" what the class is working on.  This leaves little room for either flexibility or true adaptation for struggling students.  And, we are to provide our own materials if the school does not have them.  It feels like being a robot training robots.

It is hard to attract new teachers to this.  We veterans have come to love our children so much we will put up with all this nonsense.  The new teachers get burned out before they get to see just how great our kids are. 

How do we fix this?  We begin by acknowledging that "not everyone can teach."  The notion that everyone is already a teacher and with a little training can manage and equip a class has let governments, administrators, businesses, and so many others dismiss the complexities of teaching.  If you assume anyone can do the job, you put little or no value on it.  You come to expect that the children will be taught everything they need to know in the ways colleges and businesses want them to be  taught or else the teachers are just not doing their job correctly or are lazy.

I am sorry to have gone on in this way, but I love teaching and want things to change enough to encourage young people to enter the profession and come to love teaching and the children taught as much as I have.  I want young people to know the joy of watching children grow and learn and discover as they move through their childhood into the future. 

We as a nation need to stand up and claim our public schools.  Instead of trying to privatize and shut them down.  WE need to state loud and clear for all to hear that it is in public schools that our children learn diversity.  They come to value our democracy and want to pass it on.  Our children can learn to see and help those who are struggling.  It is where we have exceptional teachers who care deeply for the children, not because their parents have a lot of money to support the school, but because they are children for whom we as a community are responsible.

We count on you, the village that we are helping to raise our children.  Stand up for us teachers and our children. 

THE NEW AMERICAN PIE

by Ruth A. Sheets

Some days, turning on the news takes an act of courage.  Can I bear to eat one more piece of the hate and fear pie being baked for us by the current administration?  We are told it is a great American pie and we  should love it.  The chefs, primarily white men regularly dish up a concoction of misogyny, racism, xenophobia, homophobia, transaphobia, urbaphobia, pooraphobia, and a variety of other stuff THAT'S harder to identify. 

These chefs are pretty good at THEIR WORK.  They tuck their ingredients into a crust of double talk, lies, blaming, ignorance, naivete, childishness, and insensitivity.  Then, the top of their concoctions are brushed with a generous helping of hypocrisy, passing the buck and lack of accountability.  It is often baked in secret and fed to us in small enough servings that we don't really complain too much.  After all, we have lives to live.

If we don't like the slice of pie we are given, that's our fault because we are told how healthy this is for our nation and that our bad taste makes us unpatriotic.

There is always a crowd screaming for the chefs telling them how wonderful they are and that there has never been such a good group of bakers. 

If one were to ask one of these pie lovers what they like about the pie and the chefs who made it, they would say that the chef doesn't take anything from anyone and doesn't care what anyone thinks.  The chef really knows them and cares what happens to them.

When the pie is actually examined, it is clear its ingredients do not include generosity, caring, kindness, loving one's neighbor as oneself, or any of those things once thought to be essential to a good American pie. 

Many gag on the fear and hatred wafting from this pie, but it is hard to escape it.  The chefs were carefully selected to be sure they had a hate and fear level high enough that some could be transferred into the pie during each baking session. 

There is a problem.   Even if one does not want to eat a piece of the pie, it is hard to escape.  It's brought out every day with fanfare, like the pie with the four and twenty blackbirds was brought out.  So much of it comes out each day that the nation is choking on it.  Just as one recovers from the last bite, the next is coming along.

"Fire the Head Chef!" you say.  That will not help much because the assistant chefs are of equal quality and this American pie will just keep coming.

Maybe it is possible for other chefs, rival chefs to arise and begin baking pie that is more in keeping with the kind of diet Americans mostly want.  This will keep the recipes fresh for when this becomes the pie of the land again. 

The recipe we will keep alive has a filling of acceptance, understanding, caring, kindness, and courage.  It must be served in a crust of generosity, honesty, insight, intelligence, and topped with faith in our democracy. 

Pass the recipe.  Add all the positive ingredients you want.  Share the pie so we will have practiced enough to make a truly glorious pie in the near future.

TALK OF REGULATIONS

by Ruth A. Sheets

Regulations are in the news in a big way since the 2016 election.  Mr. Trump claims that regulations are causing our economy not to grow at the rate he says should be happening.  So, of course, as with many issues this president has "taken on," his followers think it's a great idea to get rid of regulations.
What are regulations?  They are rules passed to help someone.  There are a variety of someones who can be helped:  citizens of a community, state, or the nation as a whole, businesses, the flora and fauna of a place.

There are many reasons regulations are passed.  Probably health and safety are the most common, but sometimes, regulations are passed to stop or hurt a rival, to give a person or company an advantage, to regulate behavior an individual or small group does not like.  The one thing to be sure of, there was a stated purpose for every one, and someone had to agree to pass them.

Clearly, some of the things being regulated no longer have meaning as times have changed.  They often remain "on the books" because there seemed no reason to remove them.  Some of the people who wanted to injure rivals have passed on or the companies have closed, so these also were just left to history's dustbin.  When critics complain there are too many regulations, at least some fit into these categories.  

Many do not fit.  These are the ones that require accountability from individuals, corporations, and governing bodies.  These make it possible to function in a complex society with competing interests and activities.  No one will claim that all regulations are necessary and that there are not some that are actually stupid or even harmful.

A friend of mine is preparing a house to rent in New York.  They needed an inspection to see if there was lead paint in the house.  That makes sense because children might be in the renter's family.  However, there was a regulation that if there was lead paint on the outside of the house it had to be removed too.  Really?  On the second floor, near the roof?  My friend had to scrape the paint off, standing on a ladder, with a face mask.  That puts people at risk for something that will never affect a child or anyone else. 

I suspect there are more regulations like this one on the books of every community.  With no science to back them up, rules are passed, just in case, then never revisited or evaluated to see if they are effective or necessary.

Another example is school uniforms.  Districts across the country decided that students would behave better, learn more, or feel more included (or something similar) if school uniforms were required.  No studies were done to see if this made sense.  No well-documented studies have been done since to see if the schools have improved due to wearing of uniforms.  Naturally, this occurs predominantly in urban poor, mostly minority  schools.  An excuse to keep the regulation in place is that it is easier for parents to buy clothes for school.  What!!  Then I hear "well, kids in private schools wear uniforms.  (They wear uniforms to show they belong to an exclusive club, better than everyone else.)  Is this what "poor" schools want to convey? 

If the president's aim was to end this type of regulation, I would be with him.  This is not his intent.  He tells communities coal would come back if the regulations on the companies were eased (meaning they can dump waste into streams and rivers and ease safety rules).  He neglects to mention that coal is not coming back.  Who benefits from removing the regulations, the companies who are losing money staying in Appalachia.  Who pays, the people who will be left behind to deal with the consequences when the companies pull out, which they inevitably will.

Pollution acceptance seems to be at the center of the regulation removal.  Let companies pollute and they can make more money and, maybe create a few more jobs.  Mr. Trump does not have to prove this or even pay attention to the science that says this is not a good idea.  His followers believe it, so, of course, it must be true.  When the polluted air and water begins affecting their families, they will be sure it is someone else's fault, not theirs for not questioning the man who has lied to them constantly since he entered the 2016 campaign.

There is no doubt that communities, states, and the Federal Government should look at their collection of regulations and determine which are not supported with scientific or real-life evidence.  Which regulations could be tweaked a bit to help businesses be successful without harming their communities or the folks downstream or downwind.  They should look at the purposes behind each regulation.  Does it try to enforce someone's particular taste, religious beliefs, or personal level of comfort at the expense of others?  Does it give advantage to one particular business over another?  Does it make life better for only a small group while making life for everyone else more difficult or problematic?  Does it only pretend to promote safety and good health?  Does it claim a risk that does not exist?  Does it favor one race, religion, socio-economic group over another, limiting the prospects of the others?  If the answer to any of these is "yes," then consider removing or changing the regulation, guided by science and best practice.

Always ask:  what is the purpose? what is the expected outcome? what will this regulation correct? who benefits? who is harmed or inconvenienced? how will it be evaluated when and by whom?  No regulation should be approved without good answers to all of these questions and others that are relevant to specific situations.  Just because Mr. Trump wants regulations removed does not mean it is a good idea.  He really does not know what he is talking about, and it is not clear that he even cares.  It's about the message to his followers.  That's all.  

FOR THE WIN

by Ruth A. Sheets

WE Americans are very competitive.  We love to win.  For some, winning is everything, or as one coach used to say, "winning is the only thing." 

So, what will we do to win?  We know that some athletes will deliberately injure opponents.  They will dope and do a variety of other illegal and semi-legal things to increase their chances of winning as individuals or as teams. 

Of course, this is not restricted to athletes.  Parents sign their kids up for all kinds of programs to help their child get ahead, be the first, best, to go to the most prestigious schools.  Cheating is not off the table.  Teachers will sometimes change test answers to make their class seem more advanced, so they can win a bonus for their students' achievement.  Businesses claim artificially high profits so they will seem like winners in their field.  Students and others will plagiarize to produce "the winning paper."

People do win based on their own hard work and talent too, but if that doesn't work, some will break rules, laws, and Commandments to win.

You may have noticed I haven't mentioned politicians yet.  Politics is an entire field based on winning, just as athletics is.  Men and women who pursue a political career know this from the outset and often hone their skills in small election contests so they can build up to bigger things.  Along with their personal gifts, they tap into money, manpower, and advice from outside themselves.  Their basic tool is personal persuasion, but over time other things may be added to the toolbox.  Some of those tools can be immoral, sometimes, even illegal.  These tools have become nearly ubiquitous.  They are probably not used more today than in the past, but they now are enhanced by social media, 24/7 news cycles, the internet and instant communication, and other modern technologies.  These technologies in themselves are not the problem.  It is how they are used.  When winning is the only thing, lies, fake news, insults, disparaging slogans can spread at light speed to those the candidate or office-holder needs to win.

The 2016 U.S. Presidential Election brought to a head the question "What are you willing to do to win?"  The Democrats are seen as pathetic, weak because they did not win Congress or the Presidency.  What they also did not do (as far as anyone can tell) is check in with the Russians to see how they could smear or undermine their opponent.  They did not regularly insult, degrade, and dismiss women, people of color, Gold Star families, disabled persons, journalists, poor people, and others.  The party that won did all of these things and more.  They won.  What does that tell us? 

Perhaps there is some part of us that finds bullying compelling, despite what we tell our children.  Maybe racism and sexism are deeper and stronger than anything else in our culture including fairness, our religious beliefs, and morals.

Now, the "winners" need to keep winning.  What will they do to get a win, any win?  They will work hard to take away the ability to get health care for people who just found hope in the Affordable Care Act.  They will eliminate transgender people from bathrooms and the military for no other reason than that they can.  They will continue to further limit the rights of women to make their own reproductive decisions, They will hurt farmers so they can waste time, money, and manpower on a useless even ridiculous wall on our border with Mexico.  "I promised to do these things in my campaign and I have a mandate to do it." says their leader, no matter what works for anyone else or that he really has no mandate. 

Well, we are in for a difficult future since lying, cheating, colluding with foreign powers, hacking emails/records, disenfranchising voters, and eliminating civil rights for large groups of Americans are the predominant items in the political toolbox.  Now it is mostly Republicans and Conservatives who employ them, but, who knows, it could spread to everyone else if we don't demand higher standards for political behavior and future elections.  

THE SUPREME COURT'S CONSERVATIVE BRANCH

by Ruth A. Sheets

Since Neal Gorsuch entered the ranks of Supreme Court justices, I have been thinking about his role and the expectations his people have of him.  I say "his people" because all Americans are not his people.  Nor are the majority of Americans the people of any of the conservative justices.

It is rare to see any of the conservative 4 take a position on any case that does not help their constituents:  business, White males, the wealthy (particularly the very wealthy), Evangelical and fundamentalist Christians.  They also do their best to support Republicans in any way they can.

The Senate will be helping them out too.  When Mitch McConnell refused to even hold hearings for President Obama's nominee, Merrick Garland last year, he ignored proper protocol and respect for a sitting president.  He bet on Mr. Trump becoming president, knowing the most conservative person available could be nominated and pretty easily approved by his Senate.  Republicans seldom stand up to Mr. McConnell or, as it turns out, Mr. Trump.  Their vindictiveness against those who try independence is legendary.

So, we have Mr. Gorsuch, a rubber stamp of Justices Thomas and the late Justice Scalia.  These men are supposed to be "brilliant jurists," but in reality, it doesn't matter how brilliant they are.  They know what is expected of them and they dutifully do it, no matter the human cost.  There is no personal cost to any of them.  There is no intellectual stretch except in the way they justify the often destructive rulings handed down.  For example, they ruled that corporations are persons (Citizens United).  These conservative justices don't have to be elected or approved of in any way, so the amount of money spend in political campaigns by persons and organizations that don't even need to be identified never touches them.

Courage on their part is rarely visible and certainly not necessary.  Justice Roberts allowed a critical part of the Affordable Care Act pass on taxation grounds, but not because it was the right thing to do to help citizens get health care.  So, perhaps, a bit of courage was on display, but really, just a bit.

I keep wondering what conservatives are trying to conserve.  Is it some kind of way of life that was so wonderful it must be brought back?  Is it a sense that America is a Christian country even though it never was that?  Is it to keep White rich people in power?  Is it to blame poor people for their poverty by making it harder for them to be heard?  Is it to pretend that LGBTQ people don't exist, so giving them the same rights as everyone else is not necessary because they don't exist, so don't need any extra protections? 

I also often wonder why conservatives are so obsessed with women's reproductive organs.  They don't seem as worried about male reproductive parts.  If they cared at all about women and women's rights, they would once and for all strike down all the state laws that get between a woman and her doctor in her reproductive decisions.  Why don't they do this -- because their constituents don't like letting women act as full adults.  Men might have to share some power.

And, what is it with the conservatives and guns?  Of course, when the conservatives on the Court say states and communities can't make certain laws to restrict guns, they really mean guns owned by White people, particularly White men.  They can't state it that way in their decisions, but we see the results when a Black driver is murdered after he tells police officers he has a permit to carry.  Those officers, of course are not convicted of anything. 

What can we expect this coming year from the conservative 4, perhaps 5 if Justice Kennedy is in his conservative mood?  I suspect if they can get to it, they will end or severely damage Roe v. Wade, strengthen Citizens United, end the right to marry for LGBTQ couples, allow disenfranchisement of more and more citizens who just don't fit what conservatives see as "real Americans."  They may allow Mr. Trump's travel and refugee bans as everyone who is not Northern European is a terrorist.  The one guarantee, their 4 basic constituencies will be well served and everyone else will be left to pick up the pieces and go on the best they can.  One would think we could do better.

AN OPEN LETTER TO CONGRESS, PARTICULARLY THE MONEY ADDICTED

by Ruth A. Sheets

Dear Members of Congress:

The most current versions of Trump Care and the proposed budget are designed to give a large tax cut to those who need it least and cut all kinds of programs for the most vulnerable Americans.  You guys do know that rich people and corporations do not need more welfare money given to them from the government.  You do know that, but you are feeding an addiction more powerful than the opioid crisis afflicting our communities.  I call on you to help the wealthy citizens and corporations acknowledge their addiction and rehabilitate.  Stop giving them the money drug they want and help all of us live better.

I, like you, am a U.S. taxpayer, who cares about this nation and is very concerned about the way we have deified money and those who accumulate it.  We have forgotten how to challenge the notion of their moral superiority and greater value to society.  We have enabled them to spread the lie that more money will cause them to hire more people at higher wages, "trickledown economics."  Everywhere in media, advertisements, books, etc., we see these people and what they have and are regularly assured that they have earned it and everyone else could have it if they worked hard enough. 

You and I know this is not true, but it has caused many folks like you to gain power and privilege beyond anything earned through service to the people.

If you are one of those suffering from money addiction, your constituents and colleagues could be of help in your rehabilitation.  Start with no tax cuts for yourself and the other wealthy people and corporations.  You all don't need it.  The social programs that would be sacrificed to provide your fix are essential for the well-being of a lot of people.  Show all of us that you care for something beyond your re-election.  You might find that your constituents will like you better. 

So, begin with these ideas that have been circulating.

a) No more tax cuts for wealthy persons and corporations. They should pay their fair share of taxes as they use our shared resources, even more than others do.  Call what you are planning what it really is "corporate welfare and feeding a money habit.

b) Invest those tax dollars in our country’s future―in public roads and transit systems; quality and affordable early childhood education; public schools and higher education; researching new medical cures;  investing in programs and strategies to combat climate change and poverty; and ensuring a secure retirement for all of us by strengthening Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.

c) Eliminate all tax breaks that encourage multinational corporations to shift jobs and profits offshore.

d) Require corporations to pay the $750 billion they owe on their $2.6 trillion in offshore profits. Use the funds to rebuild roads and bridges, improve schools and create millions of good-paying jobs. 

e) Speak out on behalf of the First Amendment and work with the media to begin changing the perception of Americans that money is everything.

This would be a good start.  Then, when you and the nation are healthier, we can work for more. 

Peace,
Ruth Sheets, Citizen

WOMEN HATING WOMEN

by Ruth A. Sheets
"Oh, you know her, she's just a . . ."  then "You know she can't be trusted, you know how women are."  also "I don't think I could stand her voice for 4 years."  and "She's such a b***h!"

I heard these statements and far worse during the 2016 presidential campaign.  I think I might get it more if they were said by men, as men's understanding of women is less than excellent.  I wasn't expecting the high level of vitriol toward Hillary Clinton from women.

I suppose I should have, though.  I am a teacher, a profession where females are the majority, in the classroom.  If you check out the positions of leadership in schools, district administration, and teachers' unions, however, men tend to significantly outnumber women.  Women supervisors/principals, though, have been crueler in their criticism and more vindictive, not just toward me, but also toward other women on staff.

Female teachers can be less kind to colleagues as well.  This unkindness is often subtle, a quick cutting remark here and a fake self-deprecating comment to someone in authority that implicates another teacher in something, there.  "I know I don't do it as well as Miss Smith who gets extra time every day to . . " "I didn't see Ms. Jones at lunch.  I guess she was here."  "I know it isn't as nice as Ms. Johnson's . . " (even though it was actually professionally done). 

I know that author Cheryl Sandberg tells women to "lean in," but what happens when there are several women leaning in at the same time or when one is perceived to be leaning in a bit more assertively than the other women?  Often, it isn't pretty.  What's going on here?  Women have made progress over the past few decades, haven't we?  Yes, we have, but there is something else going on.

Law Professor Patricia Williams in "The Nation" Magazine discussed the way some English words have become sexualized even though English words do not have gender prefixes and endings the way words in languages like French and Spanish do.   Which gender is associated with certain words is perfectly clear.  Cultural/social practices have associated characteristics to words.  So, the images one gets when saying or hearing the word "woman" can be pretty toxic.  Let's see, emotional, fussy, pushy, weak, submissive (or controlling) depending on a variety of factors, poor decision maker, vindictive, nasty, back-stabbing, soft, mother, nag, helpless.

Professor Williams uses the word "president" to help explain this phenomenon.  She says that Americans have an image of president as white and male.  It would be hard for many people to consider supporting a person in that office who is either a person of color or a woman.  This may account for the number of women who voted either for Donald Trump (despite his clear misogyny) or against Hillary Clinton, "She just doesn't 'look' presidential." 

Ms. Clinton did few of the reprehensible things Mr. Trump has done and her email-related poor judgment is really nowhere as serious as the media and Mr. Trump would have us believe.  But her sin is the worst one.  She's a woman and we can't get past what we believe a woman is/must be.  She tried to reach the highest office in the land, one she is not entitled to.  She left her place, so is an acceptable target for loathing by other women. "Only a man is strong enough to be Commander in Chief, you know."  

A few weeks ago, I attended an affair at a church.  The keynote speaker was a woman minister.  The event was to honor an extremely competent, active, caring woman for her years of service.  What was the talk about?  It was about how women need to submit to men.  They need to marry, have kids and submerge their needs beneath their husbands, the master and head of the house.  I was sitting with a woman who had divorced an abusive husband, yet, she kept nodding during the talk saying "Yes Lord" and "That's right."  I was totally shocked.  She was being insulted and put down, yet agreed.  And, the person doing the insulting was a woman.

The very little bit I could do was to occasionally shake my head and mumble "No, that's not OK."  (This was not my church and I didn't want to make waves.)  I didn't applaud for the speaker because I knew that most of the people in the room were strong competent, confident women.  I can honestly say I had no idea what the speaker was thinking and what led her to make such a ridiculous speech to these amazing women and why they all just sat there and took it with "Amen" and "Yes Lord.".  Could it be that somewhere deep down, we women believe that we really are not as good or as valuable as men?  Maybe, even most women see "popping babies" as our primary purpose in life, the secondary purpose being to support men and whatever they do or want.    

Perhaps, the only way we can really change things for women in society is to force the media to regularly show all kinds of women in a variety of roles, without male commentary.  More women need to step up and run for office at all levels.  This is not a new thought, organizations like Emily's List have been working on this for years.  However, it could be that more people saying and encouraging it could truly change the perception of women, even by women.

PERMISSION TO DESTROY

by Ruth A. Sheets

Following his inauguration, Donald Trump began the process of dismantling the Federal Government.  He did not ask the American people if we wanted this; he simply jumped right in.

How did he do it?  He nominated for each of the departments in the cabinet someone completely inappropriate for the position of secretary.  Because he is "Republican," and because the Senate is controlled by Republicans, and because winning is all to Republicans these days, the Senate confirmed every name that came to them.  A non-educator, public educating hater is now Secretary of Education.  A former surgeon is Secretary of Housing and Urban Development.  A man totally unable to acknowledge climate change heads the Environmental Protection Agency.  The Department of Defense is headed by a man who has said "I am polite, but I am prepared to kill everyone I meet."  He also got a waiver since a military person should not be in a civilian position until they have been out of the army for at least seven years.  The Secretary of State is a man whose previous experience is not with diplomacy and foreign relations, but with running an oil giant.  The Secretary of Transportation's claim to fame is that she is married to the man who runs the Senate (how convenient).

When one looks at the list, it is clear this is a deliberate plan to undermine the work of the Government.  If little by little the departments fail to provide the services needed by the American people, the people's dissatisfaction will grow and ta-da, the Republicans were right!  The Government is a mess and should be shrunk, even disappeared.  They will not know what should replace it, so that's where Mr. Trump and his cronies will come in.  They will have a plan alright, and it will not be pretty for anyone, but it will be too late to stop it.

It is easy to blame Mr. Trump for all of this, but let's face it, he's just not strong enough or smart enough to pull this off by himself.  He has had considerable help from his "advisors" who carry with them their own brand of hatred and distrust of anyone who is not white, male, rich, and nominally Christian.  These men believe in their own brilliance (they are rich after all).  And, they would be even more wealthy if those other people were not in the way.  Those people are taking the money we could be spending on more military stuff to prove how strong we are.  Of course they don't actually go and fight; that's for the "takers" who need to earn their place in America.

The Republicans in Congress and Mr. Trump's entourage either help to shape Mr. Trump's "Executive Orders," or they do nothing to stop them.  They have all benefited from the gerrymandering that has been storming state legislatures since the 2010 census, insuring that Republicans have little opposition.  Major efforts are underway to keep people, mostly minorities, from voting in a nation that claims to be a democracy. 

Congress could fix all of this with new laws requiring independent groups to draw district lines.  They could make automatic registration at age 18 mandatory for all Federal elections (as they have had men register for the draft).  Congress could stop the travel bans cold, knowing they are targeting Muslims, something that is un-American.  They could override any veto with their patriotic fervor. 

Why don't they do these things?  I suspect it is because these actions would make America more fair and they are afraid that if things were fairer, they might not be in the positions they currently hold.  When you are addicted to power, it is hard, perhaps impossible to imagine yourself without it.  Giving more people voice threatens those who would monopolize the conversation.

I know many people disapprove of any  comparison of this administration to that of 1930s Germany, but there are similarities that are hard to ignore.  Adolf Hitler did not have the ability to cause the destruction of Germany and the Holocaust by himself.  He needed and received an enormous amount of help from men who were even more lethal than he was.  He got the ball rolling and talked the talk.  They moved the process forward possibly beyond anything Hitler dreamed of. 

We at least have that example to learn from if we would.  Just because Mr. Trump says something does not mean anyone should act to support it.  Congress had no trouble opposing nearly everything President Obama recommended.  One can't help but wonder if Republicans even think of what is best for all Americans, even those who voted them into office.  Since actions speak louder than words, I would say "Not likely."  Republicans are giving Mr. Trump permission to do whatever he wants to do.  Maybe we humans really can't learn from history.

WHEN ALMOST NO ONE WANTS IT

By Ruth A. Sheets

Since the election of Donald Trump, by Electoral College, the Trump administration thinks that somehow they have a mandate to do anything, and I mean anything.

When a candidate loses an election by 3 million votes, yet still "wins," it does not indicate any kind of mandate.  It is a time when the elected official should be trying to court the American people and learn what they, more than the 25% or so who put Mr. Trump over the top,  feel they need and want.  This has not happened. 

Net Neutrality?  There is no evidence that a majority of Americans want to end net neutrality and want a few corporations to have a say as to what and how much goes over the internet, and for how much.  Congress has passed a law giving permission to corporations to even sell your personal information to other companies if they choose.  I did not see/hear anywhere that Americans want that, yet, Congress and Mr. Trump did it anyway.

Tax Reform?  Has anyone officially weighed in on whether they are in favor of the huge tax cut for the richest Americans proposed by Mr. Trump's tax reform plan (the (ACHA as well)?  Do Americans want the largest corporations to have such a low tax rate that they will hardly be obligated for taxes to cover the public resources they use up?  Of course not.  Does anyone believe these corporations will in a positive way, invest the windfall in more jobs?  Not likely. 

Health Care?  When the ACA was being worked out, many individuals and medical organizations, as well as the insurance industry were asked for their input.  There were public hearings.  However, citizens were told by people with bigger mouths than the average that this law would be tragic and would bankrupt us all.  Of course there was no evidence, but so what.  The people, mostly Middle America bought the lies and no Republican lawmakers voted for ACA (Affordable Care Act).  They named it Obamacare and dismissed it at every turn, trying to repeal it 60 times and parts of it even more often.

Something strange happened when coverage began, though, people started to like what it offered them:  lower premiums, health care they had not had for a long time (if ever), the ability to have their children on their plans to age 26, pre-existing conditions covered, contraception covered, assistance with maintaining better health through regular monitoring, prescriptions covered, Medicaid expanded to help more of the "least of these.".  You get the picture.  People were actually being served.  Now, who wants it eliminated?  Who wants it changed to uninclude the aspects mentioned above?  Mr. Trump, of course, and the House of Representatives who have already voted to do just that. 

The Senate currently has 13 men meeting together in secret to make up a new health care law to please a small sector of their supporters to "Repeal and Replace."  They call their work in progress "the American Health Care Act."

Like nearly everything else the Republicans in Congress come up with, the bill's title means exactly the opposite of what the law will actually do.  It will not provide health care to any but those who already have it through their jobs.  It will lower or eliminate the number of people served by Medicaid.  The House bill allows insurance companies to determine who and what will be covered.  Pre-existing conditions will only be covered if the company says it will be.  Serious, potentially expensive health care will be handled by some kind of inadequately funded state pool for those horrible sick people, implying they are sick by their own actions. 

If you want maternity care, or reproductive health care of any kind and you are not covered on your job, too bad.  That's on you.  Nearly everything is a pre-existing condition, even having had a C-section in the past. 

Who came up with this appalling bill (which, of course, we have not seen yet), 13 white men who could not possibly care less about people's health care.  They care only that they help the corporations who support their campaigns and look like they are cutting money from the budget.  (Even the insurance companies are not pleased with the House bill.)

Mr. Trump and his few supporters have way too much power and influence.  They are trying to push through legislation to please a particular minority who will, alas, be hurt by it too.  

The one thing that is certain.  If the bill were going to be good for all Americans, it would not be drawn up in secret by a few Senators who really don't know much about health care.  Something that might help here would be a law stating that the Congress must participate in whatever bill they pass.  They would get no other financial support for health care, and have to use their "hard-earned" bucks to pay out of pocket the thousands of dollars many health conditions cost.

If they have a disabled child, they will have to pay the cost the way any other citizen without another plan would pay.  You or your wife pregnant, no problem, you pay for all of it.  You can't afford another child, pay for the contraception.  Shot while practicing for a baseball game, no problem, pay out of pocket the percentage you must pay for the deductible and whatever percentage you agree is the one insurance companies can charge.

If you put yourself in the place of the people being served by the health care programs in this country, you will ditch the plans you are working on, and start over with hearings, a variety of people in the room helping to develop the legislation.  Serious discussion and input from a wide range of Americans of all backgrounds would take place, and you would welcome it because that is how a democracy should work. 

I don't see this happening, but  I hope your actions and the people you injure by your indifference and need to bow to Mr. Trump, who knows nothing about health care and cares less, will, in time, come back to bite you and you will feel some of the pain they have been feeling.  Americans don't want your brand of health care.